State to repossess Lhosalafushi, make it part of Kurendhoo

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu said on Saturday that he will make Lhosaliafushi, an uninhabited island in Lh. Atoll, part of Kurendhoo.

In a gathering held in Kurendhoo after meeting officials from the island’s council and women’s development committee, President Muizzu said that Kurendhoo, an island of over 2,000 people, needs more land.

He said that reclamation of the island’s lagoon will not create enough land to fulfill its developmental needs.

He said that he has therefore decided to place Lhosalafushi as part of Kurendhoo’s jurisdiction. He however said that the island had some old agreements, which would need to be resolved first.

“Therefore, as I said during the council meeting, I will free the island from all these agreements and get this done in accordance with proper procedure and in a manner that minimizes the risk to the state… and will, In Sha Allah, do everything I can to make Lhosalafushi part of Kurendhoo,” he said.

President Muizzu said that getting Lhosalafushi was crucial to Kurendhoo, and that he would prioritize the initiative.

280 social housing units were built in at Gaakoshi and Arabiyya plots under an agreement signed between the state and India’s Tata during former president Mohamed Nasheed’s administration. In exchange, the company was given Naadhee and Odeon plots to develop and sell luxury apartments, as well as Lhosalafushi, to build a resort.

But the agreement was terminated in 2017, during former president Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom’s administration, citing delays in the housing project.

Tata subsequently lodged a case with the Mumbai Arbitration Center, seeking USD 200 million (MVR 3 billion) in damages.

After it appeared that Tata would win the case, former president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih’s administration, in 2022, decided to settle and issue the company land from Lhosalafushi to build luxury villas.